While Gulfstream will not be drawn in which particular Asian culture this nomenclature is deemed offensive, a Chinese expert tells Flightglobal the number 250 can be translated into Mandarin as "stupid" or "idiotic".

"Since introducing the Gulfstream G250 in 2008 and presenting it to customers around the world, we determined that G280 is a more amenable number sequence in certain cultures," Larry Flynn, Gulfstream senior vice-president marketing and sales, said.